Delhi High Court tookย suo moto cognisanceย of the grievance of the citizen whose mother is COVID-19 positive. In effect, the court issued directions to both the Centre as well as the Delhi Government; they have to report about the arrangements and helplines put in place for serious COVID-19 patients who need hospitalization. The Division Bench consisted of Justices Vipin Sanghi and Rajnish Bhatnagar. Adding to it, the government has to assess the adequacy of the helpline capacity and report whether it is sufficient to deal with the present traffic. Moreover, the call traffic is going to rise in the near future.
The matter came into light after Dharmendra Bhardwaj faced difficulty in the hospitalization of his mother. The Complainant informed the Court that Deputy Medical Superintendent of Max Hospital, Patparganj told him to arrange a ventilator and hospital bed for his mother in another hospital. Being that, he visited several hospitals but to no avail. Moreover, he called the helpline no. 1075 many times but got no response. He expressed his helplessness to the court.
On the other hand, Mr Rahul Mehra appeared on behalf of the Delhi government. He informed the court that helpline numbers are not functioning efficiently. Furthermore, the government is trying to set the system in order. Taking note of urgency of the issue, the court issued directions to both the centre and the state government. It appointed Advocate Om Prakash as the Amicus Curiae of the court.
